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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. fall — the season
  3. kick — in football
  4. bass — low music
  5. mug — a face
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — to recline
  8. wound — an injury
  9. scale — in music
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. scale — size or range
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — to rob
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. fall — to drop
  19. hand — help
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. bass — the fish
  24. wound — an injury

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com